Food Allergies FTW! \o/
Stella made a *delicious* dip of edamame, avocado, wasabi, and various spices. Really good. Really bright green, very pretty. I have eaten all these things separately, and had no reaction to any of them. Apparently, however, in combination, they produce some chemical that makes me want to CLAW OFF MY SKIN.
Now, the number of medications you can buy here OTC is quite limited. No going out and buying Benadryl. But I did have something on hand--luckily I remembered--called Calma, which is specifically for motion sickness (åksjuka) and it has Benadryl, so I took that before I did myself any disfiguring damage. Bah. I can't recall ever being allergic to anything I've eaten. New experiences, blah blah.
I spent most of the day packing/unpacking the single suitcase I'm going to take, trying to keep the weight under 20 kg (45 lbs, including the weight of the suitcase). This is surprisingly difficult to do. I've been putting in/taking things out, trying to decide what to take, and what gets thrown away, because the only clothes that go with me are what I can fit into said suitcase at said weight. Everything else gets thrown away because I can't afford to ship it. I've thrown away (to this point) four large bags of clothing and another of shoes.
BTW? Rolling clothing allows you to fit in far more things. You wouldn't think so, but it's true.
Surprisingly, what bothers me more is the books. Again, I've tossed out bags of books. I have three small boxes that I'm going to ship, and they have the books/dvds I really don't want to lose. Mostly, the only books I've kept are ones that would be hard to find/replace. I hate leaving so many dvd series behind, (I'll miss the Buffy/Angel series) but there's only so much that I can afford to ship. I know it's only things, but still, things I've hung on to for years.
Went through all my papers, gathered what needs to be taken, threw away what didn't. Got a letter from my former employer saying that yes, I actually did have a job while I was here. And written in English, which I appreciated. They're nice folks--any dealings I had with them were pleasant and professional.
Yesterday I went downtown looking for a fanny pack at a price I could afford. Yeah, I know that fanny packs are visually awful, but handy during travel. Didn't find one, but I did find a little wallet with a cord that goes around your neck, holding it in front of you. A security wallet? It's big enough to hold passports and such and was only 100 kronor (@ sixteen dollars).
I've also gotten a three month supply of meds to take with me. I will really miss socialized medicine. The people who are all up in arms about it have no idea what a comfort it is. Here, I was covered, I could afford meds, and doctor visits/hospital visits were at minimal cost (no more than a co-pay). Now, I'll have to find a job with insurance or pay out the nose for it, or do without meds. Given that I'm on a metric ton of blood pressure meds and I'd really prefer not to stroke out, this is problematic. I could stretch them and take them every other day, if necessary, but that's not really optimal. It does give me incentive to find a job quickly, though. It will not, however, be as an RN--I couldn't afford the fees to renew my license when it came due. I'll have to see what I can find, see what I need to do about renewing my license, if I need to sit boards again (and that's a horrifying thought).
I let my driver's license lapse, so I'll need to take that again. Ugh. UGH. I haven't driven in five years. I know it's like riding a bike, though; the driving isn't what worries me, but the written test. Do they still make you parallel park? Who parallel parks anymore? When I get back, I'll need to see if I can figure out bus lines. I've been spoiled here in Sweden--their bus services are exceptional. Home, I think, is probably pretty crappy in comparison, but we'll see.
I also need to get myself to the lung clinic and see about replacing parts on my cpap machine, because I won't be able to afford anything once I get home. Five years ago, at home, the mask was 300 dollars. Here, they just gave me one, and have replaced things as I needed them, without cost. Yeah, socialized medicine is EVIL, I tell you.
I'd hoped to be able to ship the tower of my computer, because really, it's just a couple years old and works wonderfully well. However, I'm not so sure about that. It may be cheaper to instead buy a second-hand one once I'm there. I might even have my old desktop at home--I'll have to call and see. I have a metric ton of music, TV series, movies and other stuff on it, so I guess I'll see about zipping files and storing them temporarily on megaupload or some such. At home I'll have dial-up, which will be painful, after the luxury of high-speed here.
Time for a bit of brekkie and then there's stuff I need to do.
Now, the number of medications you can buy here OTC is quite limited. No going out and buying Benadryl. But I did have something on hand--luckily I remembered--called Calma, which is specifically for motion sickness (åksjuka) and it has Benadryl, so I took that before I did myself any disfiguring damage. Bah. I can't recall ever being allergic to anything I've eaten. New experiences, blah blah.
I spent most of the day packing/unpacking the single suitcase I'm going to take, trying to keep the weight under 20 kg (45 lbs, including the weight of the suitcase). This is surprisingly difficult to do. I've been putting in/taking things out, trying to decide what to take, and what gets thrown away, because the only clothes that go with me are what I can fit into said suitcase at said weight. Everything else gets thrown away because I can't afford to ship it. I've thrown away (to this point) four large bags of clothing and another of shoes.
BTW? Rolling clothing allows you to fit in far more things. You wouldn't think so, but it's true.
Surprisingly, what bothers me more is the books. Again, I've tossed out bags of books. I have three small boxes that I'm going to ship, and they have the books/dvds I really don't want to lose. Mostly, the only books I've kept are ones that would be hard to find/replace. I hate leaving so many dvd series behind, (I'll miss the Buffy/Angel series) but there's only so much that I can afford to ship. I know it's only things, but still, things I've hung on to for years.
Went through all my papers, gathered what needs to be taken, threw away what didn't. Got a letter from my former employer saying that yes, I actually did have a job while I was here. And written in English, which I appreciated. They're nice folks--any dealings I had with them were pleasant and professional.
Yesterday I went downtown looking for a fanny pack at a price I could afford. Yeah, I know that fanny packs are visually awful, but handy during travel. Didn't find one, but I did find a little wallet with a cord that goes around your neck, holding it in front of you. A security wallet? It's big enough to hold passports and such and was only 100 kronor (@ sixteen dollars).
I've also gotten a three month supply of meds to take with me. I will really miss socialized medicine. The people who are all up in arms about it have no idea what a comfort it is. Here, I was covered, I could afford meds, and doctor visits/hospital visits were at minimal cost (no more than a co-pay). Now, I'll have to find a job with insurance or pay out the nose for it, or do without meds. Given that I'm on a metric ton of blood pressure meds and I'd really prefer not to stroke out, this is problematic. I could stretch them and take them every other day, if necessary, but that's not really optimal. It does give me incentive to find a job quickly, though. It will not, however, be as an RN--I couldn't afford the fees to renew my license when it came due. I'll have to see what I can find, see what I need to do about renewing my license, if I need to sit boards again (and that's a horrifying thought).
I let my driver's license lapse, so I'll need to take that again. Ugh. UGH. I haven't driven in five years. I know it's like riding a bike, though; the driving isn't what worries me, but the written test. Do they still make you parallel park? Who parallel parks anymore? When I get back, I'll need to see if I can figure out bus lines. I've been spoiled here in Sweden--their bus services are exceptional. Home, I think, is probably pretty crappy in comparison, but we'll see.
I also need to get myself to the lung clinic and see about replacing parts on my cpap machine, because I won't be able to afford anything once I get home. Five years ago, at home, the mask was 300 dollars. Here, they just gave me one, and have replaced things as I needed them, without cost. Yeah, socialized medicine is EVIL, I tell you.
I'd hoped to be able to ship the tower of my computer, because really, it's just a couple years old and works wonderfully well. However, I'm not so sure about that. It may be cheaper to instead buy a second-hand one once I'm there. I might even have my old desktop at home--I'll have to call and see. I have a metric ton of music, TV series, movies and other stuff on it, so I guess I'll see about zipping files and storing them temporarily on megaupload or some such. At home I'll have dial-up, which will be painful, after the luxury of high-speed here.
Time for a bit of brekkie and then there's stuff I need to do.